Dark Canyon Wilderness

Dark Canyon Wilderness is a protected canyon country in southeastern Utah within Manti-La Sal National Forest and Bears Ears National Monument. Its horseshoe-shaped expanse includes the upper forty miles of Dark Canyon and the main tributaries Woodenshoe and Peavine canyons, descending from Elk Ridge through striking changes in elevation and vegetation. Terraced sandstone walls rise up to three thousand feet above the canyon floor, and the landscape features arches, springs, seeps, and hanging gardens. The area is rich in wildlife, including mule deer, mountain lions, black bear, and bighorn sheep, and it also preserves traces of Ancestral Puebloan cliff dwellings, linking dramatic scenery with long human history and modern conservation.

Blanding, Utah · United States